Jeanette Wässelius

Marie Jeanette Wässelius, commonly known as "Wässelia" or "Mamsell Wässelia", (Stockholm, 23 August 1784–5 December 1853, Stockholm), was a Swedish opera singer and actress, the leading prima donna of the Swedish Opera during the Napoleon age in the first decades of the 19th century and sister of the international opera star Justina Casagli.

Biography and career

Jeanette Wässelius was born in Stockholm; her father worked as a tapestry manufacturer. She was accepted as a student at the Royal Swedish Opera in 1794 at the age of ten, and from this date active as a child actor in the plays directed by Anne Marie Milan Desguillons in Dramatens elevskola and in smaller roles at the main productions.

She was given a contract and appointed premier actress in 1800, after which she rosed to be considered as one of the most promising within her field and as the successor of the prima donna Caroline Frederikke Müller. During the closure of the Opera in 1806, she was employed at the Royal Dramatic Theatre, which was no problem for her, as she was fully capable also as a dramatic actor in talking parts; she was said to unite a good singing voice with an equally good talent as an actor at the dramatic stage, and when the Opera was opened again in 1809, she took the place as the leading lady at the operatic stage, just as Carolina Kuhlman was the leadig lady of the dramatic stage. She was appointed court singer in 1815 and elected as an associé to the Royal Swedish Academy of Music in 1817.

Wässelia retired in 1820 with a full royal pension from the state. Henriette Widerberg explains the circumstances of the retirement of Wässelia; in 1820, Wässelia was on the peak of her ability, and there was to have been no other grounds for her dismissal than an intrigue staged by actor and singer Edouard du Puy, with whom she was involved in a conflict and who was at the time prefekt of the opera stage - this statement also comes from Widerberg, who replaced her as the leading prima donna of the stage. Wässelia was never married. The sister of Wässelia, the ten years younger Justina Casagli, entered the theatre school ten years later and was to be famous in all Europe.

Repertoire

Initially, she was noted in easy going operettas. Her most noted parts where the interpretations of Armide, Laura in "Slottet Montenero", Sophie in Sargines, Antigone in "Oedipe uti Athen", Constance in "Vattendragaren" and Juliet in "Romeo and Juliet" (the 1814-15 season) and Iphigenie. In 1809 she was commended for her "appealing modesty and naive love" in "Kalifen i Bagdad" opposite Gustav Åbergsson and Inga Åberg on the recently reopened Opera, in 1810 she made a success in the main part of "Iphigenie i Auliden" in the beneficie-performance of Elisabeth Forsselius, who played Clytamnestra; she played the protective angel of Sweden in "Gustav Vasa" and "did remarkably well" in "Fästmännerna" together with Inga Åberg. Among her other parts where Lisette in "Musikvurmen" the 1796-1797 season, Melisse in "Renaud" 1800-1801, Lina in Operacomiquen 1803-1804, Amelina in Léhéman 1804-1805, Madame de Villeroux in "Herr des Chalumeaux" 1807-1808, Elise in "En timmas äktenskap" 1808-1809, Clorinde in Nicolas Isouard's "Cendrillon" opposite Elisabeth Frösslind 1810-1811, Emilie in "De gifta ungkarlarna" 1812-1823, Konstanze in "Die Entführung aus dem Serail" by Mozart and Mathilda in "Joconde" 1819-1820.

Assesment

Her voice was described as a colourful and versatile, her dramatic talent as "mute" but "admirably expressive", her conduct pleasant and it was said that she only needed to be taller to be a perfect heroine and queen. In the press, however, she was sometimes caricatured and called "Miss Cucumber" because of her flat figure, which was only more highlighted by the fashion of the Empire silhouette of the time. "Wässelia", as she was often called, was highly regarded by the direction because of her professional moral; according to Löwenhjelm, she allowed neither health nor personal feelings ever effect her work.

References

* http://runeberg.org/sbh/b0757.html, Sv icon.
* Georg Nordensvan, "Svensk teater och svenska skådespelare från Gustav III till våra dagar; Första bandet, 1772-1842", Sv icon.
* "Kungliga teaterns repertoar 1773-1973", Sv icon.
* Carin Österberg, "Svenska kvinnor", Sv icon.
* Nils Bohman, "Svenska män och kvinnor, nr 2", Sv icon.